The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1887-09-14

get your grandest idea Of queen, you think
Of the plain woman who sat opposite your
father at the table, or walked with him arm
in-arm down life's pathway; sometimes to
the thanksgiving banquet, sometimes to the
grave, but always Notwithstanding your
petty griefs, correcting your childish way
wardness, joining in your infantle sports,
listening to your evening prayers, tollng
for YOU with needle or at the spinning
wheel, and on cold nights wrapping you up
snug and warm And then at last on That
day when she lay in the back room dying,
and you saw her take those thin hands with
which she toiled for you so long, and
put them together in dying prayer that
commended you to the God whom she had
taught YOU to trust. 0, she was the queen!
The chariots of God came down to fetch her;
and as she went in, all heaven rose up. You
cannot think of her now without rush OF
tenderness that stirs the deep foundations or
your soul, and you feel as much child again
as when you cried on her lap; and if you
could bring her back ag iin to speak just once
more your name. as tenderly as she used to
speak it, you would be willing to throw your
self on the ground and kiss the sod that covers
her. crying: Mother! Mother" All! she was
the aueen-she was the queen. Now, can you
tell me how many thousand miles woman
like that would have to travel down before
she got to the ballot-boxa Compared with this
work of training kings and queens for God and
eternity. how insignificant seems all this
work Of voting for aldermen and common
councilmen, and sheriffs, and constables, and
mayors, and presidents To make one such
grand woman as have described how many
thousands would you want OF those people
who 20 in the round Of godlessness, and
fashion, and dissipation, distorting their
body until in their monstrosities they seem to
outdo the dromedary and hippopotamus go
ing as far toward disgraceful apparel as they
dare 20, 80 as not to be arrested by the police
their behavior a sorrow to the good and
caricature of the vicious, and an insult to that
God who made them women and not gorgonS;
and tramping on, down through frivolous
and dissipated life, to temporal and eternal
damnation!
o woman, with the lightning Of your soul,
strike dead at your feet all these allurements
to dissipation and to fashion. Your immor-
tai soul cannot bo fed upon such garbage.
God Gsd; calls you up to empire and dominion don mon.
heart: give to God your best energies; give
to God all your culture; give to God all your
refinement; give yourself to Him, for this
world and the next. Soon all these bright
eyes will be quenched, and these voices will
be hushed. For the last time you will look
upon this fair earth Fathers hand, mothers
hand, sisters hand, child's hand will he no
more in yours 1t will be night. and there
and you must start. Will it be lone woman
on a trackless moor! All, mol Jesus Will
come up in that hour and offer His hand, and
He will say: "You stood by Me when you
were well; now will not desert you when
you are sick" One wave OF His hand ana
the storm will drop; and another wave OF It's
hand, and midnight shall break into mid
noon: and another wave of His hand, and the
of God will come down from
the treasure-houses of heaven, with robes
lustrous, blood washed, and heaven-ghnted,
in which you will array yourself tor the mar
riage supper of the Lamb And then with
Miriam, who struck the timbrel of the Red
Sea; and with Deborah, who led the Lords
host into the fight; and with Hannah, who
gave her Samuel to the Lord and with MARY,
who rocked Jesus to sleep while there were
angels singing in the air; and with Florence
who bound up the battle-wounds
of the Crimea, YOU will, from the challce OF
God drink to the souls eternal rescue. .,
One twilight, after had been playing with
the children for some time, laid down upon
the lounge to rest. The children said, play
more. Children always want to play more;
And, half sleep and half awake, l seemed
to dream this dream: It seemed to me that
was in q far-distant land-not Persia, al
though more than Oriental luHuriance
crowned the cities; nor the tropics although
more than tropical fruitfulneSS filled the gar
dens; nor Italy-although more than ltahan
softness filled the air. And I wandered
around, looking for thorns and nettles, but
found none Of them grew there: Ana l
walked forth and I saw the sun rise, ana
said:
"When will it set againF and the sun sank
not. And saw all the people in holiday ap-
parel, and I said: when will they put on
workingman's garb again, and delve In the
mine. and swelter at the forgeH but neither
the garments nor the robes did they put on.
And I wandered in the suburbs, and SAID:
ssWhere do they bury the dead OF TINS greaG
city?' and I looked along by the hills w6ere
it would be most beautiful for the dead 10
sleep. and I saw castles, and towns,
and battlements; but not mausoleum,
nor monument, nor white slab could
see. And I went into the great chapel OF
the town, and I said: "Where do the poor
worship? where are the benches on which
thew sitT" and a voice answered: I'VE nave
no poor in this great city" And wandered
out, seeking to find the place where were tne
novels of the destitute and found mansions
of amber, and ivory, and gold butno tear nor
sigh did l see or hear. was bewlldered; ana
/ Sat under the shadow of great tree, and !
said: "What am I, and whence comes all
thisr' And at that moment there came
from among the leaves, skipping
up the fiowery paths and across ross
the sparkling waters, very bright ana
Sparkling group; and when saw their step
knew it, and when l heard their voices l
thought I knew them; but their apparel
was so different from anything naa
ever seen bowed, stranger to strangers,
But after awhile, when they clapped theip II,
hands, and shouted: s'Welcome! welcome
tba mystery WAS solved, and / saw that time
had passed, and that eternity had come. and
that God had gathered us up into .ng highss ess
Voices Of innumerable generations answered:
Here" and while tears of gladness were rain.
ing down our cheeks, and the branches ol
the Lebanon cedars were clapping their
hands, and the towers Of the great city were
Ginning their welcome, we began to laugh,
and sing, and leap, and shout: "Homel
Home! Homel"
Then I felt child's hand on my face, and
it woke me. The children wanted to play
more. Children always want 70 play
more.